Night's Child
by BelovedSlayer
Summary: A Slayer in love with a vampire? No one said it was going to be easy. Even more so when that vampire's sire plans to raise him as the Scourge of Europe, putting Buffy's relationship and the future of the world on the line.


Author's Note: This is a rewrite of a story that I had posted almost two years ago, with the same title. It's gonna be different than the original story had been. As always, none of the characters belong to me. Enjoy!

Someplace inside, the clock stroke midnight. She should have been asleep. But tossing and turning had taken its place, leaving her disgruntled.

She found herself barefoot near the entrance of a vast forest, somewhere near the Sunnydale city limits. The layered skirt of a white lace dress she sported ruffled softly around her. All was quiet until she caught the sound of a soft mewling emanating from the forest's black depths.

The voice was male, and it was young. Just a child from what she could guess.

She grimaced and a deep chill ran through her bones. _What if he's in trouble? _

Without pause she gives chase, maintaining her balance while overstepping numerous moss covered logs and an uphill. Blisters and cuts gathered on her feet but she continued towards the cries that echoed terror and helplessness.

Tendrils of blond hair whipped around her flushed cheeks, with bare branches scratching against her arms as if reaching out to hold her back.

Something, or someone, was coming after him.

As if on cue, a harsh growling pierced through the night.

_Vampire, _she assumed. Instinctively, she reached for a stake, but found there was none. In quick precision, she tore a branch from the closest redwood, leaping and dodging along a narrowed pathway that appeared to lead to the heart of the forest.

An owl hoots from afar, assuring her that she wasn't alone in her journey. The air grew colder and denser; shadows deepening even more than previously as she approached the center. The dark didn't deter her from her need to reach the boy. She was not going to let another newborn vampire roam the world she was destined to protect.

_Hold on kid. Help's on the way. _

Though not religious, she sent a silent prayer to the universe.

A sliver of white moonlight was the only luminescence guiding her way.

Wet traces of mud and leaves wedged between her toes, attempting to slow her down, but she was close to her destination. Blood and adrenaline pumped through her body as she expanded her lungs for an intake of air. She couldn't afford to rest.

Another vampiric growl reverberated through the air, warning her that the monster was too close for comfort.

She quickened her pace, somersaulting over a tiny stream of contaminated water.

"That vampire is dead,"she snarled.

Another leap or two and she ventured into a small clearing that appeared to be empty of any inhabitants. She skidded to a stop, Slayer senses on dangerously high alert. She wrapped her hand around the branch tightly, surveying the new found surroundings, willing her body to still itself.

A minute later, she picked up a sound; a low whimper from behind a boulder that stood to her left. A boy, about nine, scurried to another boulder, tears and dirt matting his face.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm here to help." The Slayer tried to soothe her voice, placing the branch near her left foot as she couldn't afford to frighten his wits out. She took a step forward towards him but made sure to keep her distance. The chance of luring him to the vampire out of fear of her was not one she was willing to partake.

"That was what that weird looking lady said. But she lied. She tried to hurt me." The boy stifled a cry, ducking behind the enlarged boulder.

"Where is she?"

"I…don't… know," the boy shuddered. "She ran away when she heard you coming. She had fangs. I got scared that she was gonna bite me."

"How did you get here?" Buffy continued to query. She picked up the branch and decided to snap it in half. Two weapons made a better defense than one.

"I got lost. I was here with my family. We were on a picnic. They liked coming here at night. But then we heard noises. It sounded like monsters howling. We went in different directions because it was too dark to see in front of us. I tried looking for them. When I did, I saw the lady biting them, so I ran and hide. When I tried to run some more, she came after me. She wanted to take me with her and I didn't want to. I tried to hit her when she got too close." The crying resumed. The hiccups and spasms arrived not long after.

Buffy lowered herself beside him, taking his small form into her arms. His thin arms circled around her waist, as if he was holding on to dear life. She scarcely noticed his hair resembling a rich brown hue, his skin a light olive complexion. Familiar traits she'd sword she had seen before. It didn't matter. All that did was escaping and dusting the unknown vampire, whose presence was of the highest threat.

"I'm gonna get you out of here, okay? I won't let that lady hurt you. I promise. Just hold on tight and don't let go no matter what." The boy nodded weakly against her, digging his fingers into her shoulders.

Another growl surmised, coursing the Slayer into immediate action. "We better get going. She's coming."

They veered towards a direction where an ancient cemetery awaited, hoping to confuse the vampire into believing they had taken a path opposite to the one the Slayer had entered earlier.

_Thump. Thump. Thump. _Her heart took on a continuous, hard pounding rhythm as she teetered over crumbled tombstones and tattered vines, affirming her hold on the boy whose tears matted the collar of her leather jacket.

"We're almost there," she murmured to him. "Just hold on." Another growl rose from behind. Then another. The vampire was beyond pissed, she detected. It was as if a hungry wolf hadn't fed in a week and frustration had set in as a direct result.

Panic rose. A trickle of sweat produced itself on the Slayer's forehead, but an ounce of determination returned alongside the panic.

_Come on, damnit. Come on. _

"I can see her. She's coming!" the boy frantically shouted, digging his face against the crook of her neck. She stumbled over an elevated branch, but managed to keep hold of him and their lead.

Despite the night and its damned shadows, she could make out the outline of the parking lot ahead of them. She sent another quick prayer that they would reach it in time.

"Are we almost there?" A muffled question from her neck.

"Almost. Just a few more steps…" Buffy trailed off. They finally reached the lot, and relief swept over her.

It wouldn't last.

Somehow, the vampire had caught on and pulled the boy free from the Slayer's hold. A sinister laugh wafted in the dark. It was female, and it was oddly familiar.

"You didn't think I'd let you get away with him, did you?" That female voice taunted.

Anger and distraught rose in the Slayer's chest. She'd recognized that voice anywhere.

Darla.

"Let go of me!" the boy called out, trying to scratch at Darla's hand, which held on to his waist too tightly for comfort. Freeing himself was utterly useless. She was too strong.

"What do you want with him?"

Darla grinned, flashing delicate fang points that lengthened past her bestial mouth.

"You'd think I'd tell you that? Not a chance in hell."

Buffy charged recklessly towards her, using the broken branch pieces as leverage. Darla vanished before she could strike, her menacing laughter blanketing the forest along with the boy's never ending wailing. The sound would haunt her for many nights after.

"Damnit!" she slammed a fist onto the concrete pavement, shattering it. Her heart plummeted to her stomach.

She had cursed not only because of Darla stealing the boy away from her, but glancing at his face for the first time, she knew she had seen it before, and the realization tore her world apart.

It was Angel.


End file.
